I mentioned that last week’s opening lineup was as good as any I could remember. This week isn’t so highly-anticipated. Many of the nation’s top teams are playing glorified preseason games against small-conference and FCS schools. The ones that played big-time openers a week ago – Alabama, Clemson and Virginia Tech, especially – mostly ramped it down for Week 2. Still, there are a few good matchups on the docket for Saturday, particularly in the SEC.

The wait for college football is, mercifully, almost over. There’s one day left before things get started with a game that is of major interest to folks around here –South Carolina at Vanderbilt on Thursday night. I thought I’d take a stab at predicting the outcome of that one, plus a few other high-profile games lined up over the next four days. Maybe it’s just the long off-season talking, but this feels like the best opening-week slate in some time.